Claim: Imran Khan has been appointed as the chancellor of the University of Oxford.
Fact: Khan has submitted his nomination for the open position, according to one of his aides in the UK. The Oxford University has not released any list of candidates but said that voting for the post will start on 28 October 2024 and final results are to be announced in the week starting 25 November 2024.
On 28 August 2024, Capital TV posted (archive) a news report on YouTube titled “Imran Khan’s Appointment As Chancellor | Big News From Oxford University | Capital TV”. The clip, which has been viewed over 201,000 times, has a thumbnail with text that reads as follows:
“BREAKING NEWS چانسلر کیلئے خان کا انتخاب ! آکسفورڈ یو نیورسٹی سے بڑی خبر آگئی
[BREAKING NEWS Khan’s election as Chancellor! Big news from Oxford University]”
While the video report itself does not make any misleading or false claims, the headline as well as the text in the thumbnail is misleading as it suggests that Khan has already been elected as the chancellor.
Earlier this year, reports emerged claiming that Khan, the former prime minister and founder of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), had been nominated as a candidate for the University of Oxford’s chancellor post, which opened when Lord Christopher Patten announced (archive) his retirement “at the end of the 2023-24 academic year”.
However, those reports were debunked as false as they were based on a speculative piece (archive) published by the London Evening Standard, which did not cite any official sources nor a poll on public opinion and described Khan as one of the “more wild-card candidates”.
The former PM’s application for nomination has now been submitted to the University, an aide said.
“As per Imran Khan’s instructions, his application form to Oxford University Chancellor Election 2024 has been submitted. We look forward to everyone’s support for a historic campaign,” Sayed Zulfikar Bukhari, the aide, wrote (archive) on X (erstwhile Twitter) on 18 August 2024.
Reports about Khan’s application for the Oxford chancellor role has caused a flurry of activity, with op-eds published in favour of and against his bid, an analysis stating his “odds look slim”, and petitions supporting and opposing his move viewable here, here, and here.
The Daily Mail’s website, MailOnline, reported that Oxford University has received “emails” and “a petition” and seen “protests” after the application by the “disgraced” prime minister; however, the tabloid did not provide any source.
Two Pakistani men have also apparently submitted “evidence” to the university hoping Khan would be “declared ineligible”.
According to The Daily Telegraph, the PTI founder has said he wants the chancellor role in order “giving back” to the university that “helped me a lot in my formative years”.
The Imran Khan fiasco
Khan was first arrested (archive) on 9 May 2023 on the orders of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) over charges of corruption in the Al-Qadir Trust case (archive). His detention triggered violent, country-wide protests and he was released (archive) a few days later after the Supreme Court of Pakistan intervened.
The former PM was arrested (archive) and imprisoned for a second time on 5 August 2023, after a court ruled his “dishonesty [was] established beyond doubt” in the Toshakhana case. He has been incarcerated since then.
In January 2024, just a month ahead of the general elections in Pakistan, he was sentenced for a total of 31 years over charges of corruption, leaking state secrets, and an un-Islamic marriage, according to these reports (archived here and here).
Khan was seen for the first time (archive) since his incarceration in an apparently leaked photo from the 16 May 2024 proceedings, when he was allowed to appear in the Supreme Court via a video link.
A day prior to the court proceedings, the PTI leader was granted (archive) bail in a corruption case. Earlier, the sentences handed down in two of the four cases he was convicted in were also suspended; one of them (archive) was the Toshakhana case. However, he would not be released from jail, his lawyer had said (archive).
In July, it was reported that Khan was acquitted in two other cases (archived here and here) by Pakistani courts.
Fact or Fiction?
Soch Fact Check went through the “Election of the next Chancellor” (archive) page of the Oxford University’s website to review the available information in this regard.
“The incoming Chancellor will be in post for a term of 10 years,” says the website, adding, “Convocation will be asked to elect a new Chancellor in Michaelmas term,” which starts on 13 October and ends on 7 December. It also states that over 250,000 colleagues and alumni would be able to participate in the Chancellor’s election online; however, voter registration has now closed.
The University explains that a list of candidates for the chancellor’s post will not be made public until early October and that voting will take place in the week starting 28 October 2024. The winner will be announced during Seventh Week, which corresponds to the week starting 25 November 2024.
Soch Fact Check, therefore, concludes that clickbait headlines circulating online claiming Khan’s appointment as the chancellor of Oxford University are misleading as they suggest that he has already been chosen for the role. While the former premier’s application for nomination has been submitted, the educational institute has said that voting for the post will begin on 28 October 2024.
Virality
Soch Fact Check found that Capital TV shared the false claim in the titles or captions of its videos here and here on YouTube, here and here on Instagram, and here on Facebook; however, the reports are merely updates on the former PM’s bid.
Other TV channels — including GNN, Geo News, Express News, SAMAA TV, and Public News — also published the claim in the thumbnails, titles, and captions of their videos here, here, here, here, here, and here.
We also found the claim in the titles, captions, and thumbnails of videos and posts shared here, here, and here. False claims were published here, here, and here.
Other posts — here, here, here, here, here, and here — where the claim has been shared assert either that Khan’s name was recommended for the chancellor’s post or that a “new survey” has shown that the former premier is at the first position among the candidates. There is no truth to these either and the survey was not conducted by any reputable organisation.
A Facebook page posted a video here with the false caption that the former Pakistani PM “is the new chancellor of Oxford” and that an “announcement of [his] success” has been made.
Conclusion: Headlines circulating online claiming Imran Khan’s appointment as Oxford University’s chancellor are misleading. Neither has a list of candidates for the post been announced nor has voting begun. The new chancellor will be announced during the week starting 25 November 2024, according to information available on the varsity’s website.
Background image in cover photo: Luna Bear
To appeal against our fact-check, please send an email to appeals@sochfactcheck.com